External Applications in Anthroposophic Nursing

Oil Dispersion Bath with Gold-Rose-Lavender Oil

Kind of substance

Gold-Rose-Lavender oil

Guiding principle for the application

In oil dispersion baths according to Werner Junge, oil is so finely dispersed in water that the body can absorb it through the skin.
As a rule, the temperature of the bath water is not higher than body temperature, so that the body’s warmth organism is stimulated. During a subsequent rest, the body is actively confronted with the substance, which stimulates it to generate its own warmth.
The choice of oil depends on the symptoms of the patient.

Guiding Principle for the substance

Indications

  • Fear
  • Depressive moods
  • Exhaustion
  • Sleep disorders (see example case)
  • Weakness after chemotherapy (see example case)

Instructions

Oil dispersion bath therapy can be learned in a detailed training course. See also the section on
“Fundamentals of External Applications”
However, a simplified procedure at home is possible after instruction by a therapist.

Particularities
If you do not have an oil dispersion apparatus, shake the oil in 10 ml cream and then add it to the bath water. The effect is not so intense, but the oil can be broken down and does not merely float on the surface of the water.

Materials

  • Bathtub
  • Oil dispersion device
  • Massage brushes, if needed
  • Fever thermometer, bath thermometer if necessary
  • 5 ml gold-rose-lavender oil
  • A flannelette bed sheet (ca. 250 cm x 150 cm)
  • 3 large terrycloth hand towels


Instructions
  • Fill the bathtub with water and oil using the oil dispersion device
  • The patient gets into the filled tub
  • Bathing time: ca. 20 minutes for a resting bath or ca. 45 minutes for one with underwater brush massage
  • After the bath, wrap the patient still wet directly out of the water in a preheated cloth and cover well in the prepared bed so that he does not freeze despite the humidity.
  • During the subsequent rest, which should last at least half an hour to an hour, it is important that the patient get warm


Follow-up
  • Clean the bathtub and oil dispersion device
  • Hang up the cloths and towels to dry

Evidence
Single case
Dosage
2–3 times a week
Onset of effect
Already after the first bath
Length of therapy
Several weeks, until improvement

Case example

The head of a palliative ward had great difficulty recovering after a breast operation followed by radiation and chemotherapy for more than two years. Constant tiredness, physical exhaustion and a correspondingly hopeless mood accompanied her everyday life. During a cure diarrhea started, which temporarily improved, but reappeared after 3 weeks. It was found that she had developed colitis. During this time, the patient began evening oil dispersion baths with Gold Rose Lavender Oil from Dr. Heberer and felt stronger for the first time, despite repeated daily diarrhea. Already after the first bath she experienced a pleasant inner sense of relief and cozy inner warmth, which made a long, refreshing sleep possible. She said, “Despite the colitis, I feel like I’m on my way up”. She bathed 2–3 times a week and a trial with a peat rosemary oil (also in the evening) showed her that the effect can also be quite different: she became completely awake, almost in high spirits and could not sleep. However, it is better to take rosemary baths in the morning. In addition, it is an application that may well be indicated later.
US

Author

Red., US

Bibliography

  • Büssing A, et al. The oil-dispersion bath in anthroposophic medicine – an integrative review. BMC complementary and alternative medicine 8.1 (2008): 61
  • v. Rottenburg T. Öldispersionsbäder. In: Lehofer M, Stuppäck Ch. Depressionstherapie, Thieme Verlag 2005.
  • Warning A, Krüger M. Das Öldispersionsbad nach Werner Junge, Der Merkurstab 2014:67(2): p. 108–115